It’s an example of phatic communication and is the modern day equivalent of the “how do you do” of the past. It serves a social rather than an informational purpose and creates a connection with those you don’t know well. It’s a type of linguistic dance that we all know how to engage.

Being unapologetic doesn’t mean being aggressive. 


It means being clear, grounded, and confident in what you have to say — without diluting your message to make others more comfortable.

I looked up what the word means and tele is Greek for far, phone for voice or sound. So telephone literally means "distant sound"… This linguistic evolution reveals something profound about how we communicate. We've created devices for "distant sound" but now we use them when people are right next to us. Ironic, isn't it?

We judge ourselves so harshly that we often forget to enjoy what we're actually doing. And in Sarah's case the stakes were even higher as any mistakes she made happened live, in front of millions of listeners. But as she so wisely put it, “success is built on the foundation of many failures”.

In this piece, I share some nutrition tips I’ve learnt from working with a nutritionist, the wonderful Clare Backhouse, and through my own scientific research. 
What works for one may not work for all, but for us women balancing leadership, life, and hormonal shifts, food is more than fuel—it’s a professional power tool.  

Psychologists tell us that as human beings we are always looking for the new - the next phone, car, job - to give us that kick of dopamine. But a couple of weeks or months later and the excitement has worn off.

This is called hedonic adaptation…

And this is the problem. We actually do need some nerves. They mean we care enough, and they give us an extra frisson of energy to up our game. But if we rely on beta-blockers, we can come across as a catatonic zombie.

Not how you want to get your message across.

Ultimately, storytelling is the alchemy of shared creativity. It’s not simply about telling a story, but about the collaboration that comes from co-creation. By asking questions, you transform your communication from a lecture into a conversation — and this is where true influence takes root.

I always tell clients to think of their presentation as a dialogue rather than a monologue. That means being focused on the audience not trapped in your head in self-conscious rumination. The dialogue becomes “What do they need? How are they responding?” This audience-centered approach is transformative.

The truth is, in today’s connected world, being able to communicate with confidence is more important than ever — and openness is right at the core of that. It’s not about oversharing; but it is about approaching conversations with a sense of vulnerability.

And that’s just it. Notes shouldn’t be a script at all, but a roadmap laid out in brief prompts. We need to create them as short bullet points rather than full sentences.

Everything we do communicates something - and because we are visual creatures, movement often speaks louder than our words.

That’s why it’s so important to move with intention.

They say that children laugh on average 150 times a day. How about you, how often do you really laugh? And that’s not counting those polite laughs we do when we know it’s what’s expected of us.

My given names are Katherine Joy. Nothing extraordinary, I thought, just typical of my generation. Katherine means pure. Joy, means, well, joy. And then I realised: my name means Pure Joy!

Hands up who’s never procrastinated?

Thought so.

We’ve all done it at sometime: starting that proposal, replying to an email that’s been in your inbox for days, or working on that great idea you’ve been hatching for months. Whatever it may be, we’ve all been there: stuck in frozen mode, waiting for the perfect moment.

But what if the solution was just three simple words?

The World Economic Forum’s estimate that we won’t achieve full gender parity globally for another 134 years, until 2158, and the United Nations’ report, “Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals: The Gender Snapshot 2022”, which says that full gender equality may not be realised for nearly 300 years!

That could mean that we women won’t get equality for at least 10 generations. That’s sobering!

And this is the problem: when we are feeling anxious, we display behaviours with our hands that can be interpreted as untrustworthy. A listener will pick up on the nervous signals as our brains are wired to pick up on hand gestures through mirror neurons.

We’ve all experienced what happens when we lose our rootedness; we’ve seen it in others around us who are reactive, anxious, or overly emotional when under pressure. We recognise the signs because, chances are, we’ve felt them ourselves.

Whether our focus is on the past, present or future, if it’s negatively fixed and convergent then we are less likely to see different perspectives and this will limit our decision-making, and our level of influence.

Have you noticed how if you go out on a day when you’re feeling confident and positive, everyone seems to reflect your mood? It’ll be smiles and after you’s, all round. Equally if you’re feeling foul, the whole world will seem to be set against you.